Every generation feels that the world is going to end during their lifetime. You can track the development of this through post-apocalyptic novels - there have been novels about the aftermath of nuclear holocaust, over-pollution, self-aware machines, Y2K, genetic modification and so on. Now, however, we have a somewhat unique situation: we have too many ways for the world to end. We have cumulated apocalypses from many previous generations, and now are trying to avert the consequences of food shortages, increasing abilities of computers, over-dominance of technology, lack of oil, population explosion, tension between countries with nuclear capabilities, terrorism (and the fear of it), and of course global warming. Everywhere we turn we are confronted with dire consequences for our actions, leading us to either become hyper-activists or ignore the issues completely, just so we can cope.
It is interesting to note that the people most affected by this global sense of impending doom are the teenagers and young adults. We have been inundated with information about all of our apocalypses, and are constantly called upon to contribute to their solutions. An Inconvenient Truth and The Day After Tomorrow have become standard substitute lessons in geography and science, to the point where we just get sick of it. Because we know the consequences. And we can't help. The people who are doing the majority of the buying and the majority of the politics are our parents, and others their age or older. They, of course, miss a lot of the propaganda, since it takes place, for the most part, in universities and schools. Which is all very well for solving what problems are left in a decade or two, but does little to solve the problem now.
Another aspect of the problem is humanity's curiosity. The thirst for knowledge may not be felt by all on an individual scale, but it can be clearly seen in the actions of the world's academics and inventors. Research has gone into every aspect of human life, although sadly, proportionally little has been published widely enough to reach the public. We will keep creating ways by which our way of life could cease to exist - it is remarkably easy to do so. So I have learnt to treat predictions of the end of the world with some skepticism, if only to preserve my own peace of mind.
A Piece of String: The ramblings of a philosopher (in the old sense of the word)
